Evoca, a NextGen TV-based video service provider, is planning to launch in Phoenix in late summer after kicking off a partnership with the educational course provider Unmudl.
Evoca’s multichannel TV service, which went live in August 2020 in Boise, Idaho, offers more than 60 channels for about $50 per month. In March, the company said it plans to soon launch in Twin Falls, Idaho. CEO Todd Achilles confirmed the upcoming launch in Phoenix.
With Unmudl, Evoca will launch a new channel called Path that includes programming and services intended to inform and connect audiences to job and skill training opportunities available in their local community via technical colleges, employers, social support and Unmudl’s online courses. Examples include practical news about jobs and educational trends, and featured stories about learners' educational experiences and career expectations, all of which the company claims will help change the narrative around skills and technical education-based paths.
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“Unmudl bridges the gap between adult working learners and job skills training and college credit towards degrees. Now, together with Evoca, we’ll be overcoming even more barriers by reaching people in their homes, connecting them to information and resources about how to become qualified for new and better jobs,” said Unmudl CEO Parminder Jassal in a statement. "Our ultimate vision is for a more equitable, sustainable future and this partnership is an important step forward in creating new paths to better jobs paying family-supporting wages.”
The news release cites data from 2019 showing that 32 million adults are jobless and lacking skills, credentials and networks needed to earn a living wage, as the driving motivation behind the new partnership. That statistic has evidently grown in the past year as the entire country reached unemployment rates greater than any point during the Great Recession.